Fitting in training around life

I have been a self-coached athlete for over a decade, moving through different types of sports and competitions. No matter the endeavor, I’m inevitably faced with the same challenge – “life happens” and derails my perfectly laid training plans (and yes, they were perfect 😛). I am the kind of person who likes to plan, to control, a typical “type A” person – but life doesn’t care. So how do I adapt?

Schedule your baseline

Scheduling your baseline is how you set up a week of training (or other reasonably short timeline) within YOUR life. My baseline is based on a week since I have recurring events that happen mostly on a weekly basis. If you’re working with a coach, you’re also likely working by week. 

The precursor to scheduling a baseline is having a clear goal. Whether you’re aspiring to increase how much yoga you do or run a marathon, the intentionality of determining your baseline plan is what makes it work. There are two key approaches, both of which I think blend to set you up for a successful start.

Approach 1 – Schedule around life commitments

What happens in your life that is non-negotiable to you or requires high energy or effort? For many people, it might be fitting in training around your work schedule. It could be family commitments or social events. Anything important to you needs to be captured, focusing on the things that are generally recurring (Thursday night trivia with friends, or a mandatory meeting on Wednesdays). This will help you narrow down available time to train around the other things that are important to you and remove competing priorities. From here, you can work to add your training and supporting activities (like prepping gear or food) into your schedule with the time that remains.

Approach 2 – Identify low-friction opportunities 

Identifying low-friction opportunities means finding when there are the fewest challenges or friction points to schedule your training. Friction might make STARTING a training session harder, like a long commute or lots of needed preparations. 

Friction may also come AFTER your training session. For example, when I don’t give myself sufficient time to do my morning workout, I derail my day, feeling like I’m trying to catch up and rush from one thing to the next. I don’t like this feeling, and instead of completing a quality training session, I’ve haphazardly started checking the boxes of my day. This friction, over time, has led me to skip workouts so I don’t feel rushed in other parts of the day. 

You might consider a group workout that has a specified time and place, and can reduce how much thought you need to give to “when am I going to do my strength workout this week?” You might assess your energy levels to determine the best time of day for you to train or when the mental strain is the lowest – I.e. takes the smallest amount of self-convincing to do the thing you really want. 

Together, these approaches can help set the groundwork for your training plan. Being clear on all of your priorities (not just for your fitness goals) and helping set yourself up for success makes the initial plan smoother to execute. 

Allowing flexibility

Upon reflection, it’s almost comical how long I was stressed out by my own training plan. In large part, it was because I wasn’t flexible with it. I’ve iterated through the two approaches above multiple times, as I’ve wanted to try something new or had a change in priorities. But once I set my plan, it’s as if I made it a life or death situation to change it. 

Enter our friend, flexibility. This part is equally about a state of mind and how to tactically make changes to a training plan. This flexibility is for the small tweaks that might need to be made on any given day in any given week. 

My state of mind had to change from “I have to do this exactly as I planned, exactly when I planned, or I’m not going to make progress!” to “Progress, in any direction, is better than doing nothing.”

Here’s one scenario that’s happened to be numerous times. My training week is outlined and ready for me to execute. I’ve prepped my workout gear for tomorrow’s early workout, but after a tough bout of Insomnia, I wake up feeling like a sluggish zombie. I make a quick decision (which has gotten faster with practice) to sleep for another hour and move my workout to the afternoon. This will mean I’ll be less recovered by the next day’s early workout, but I can make micro-adjustments if I need to when I get there (especially if it’s not a key workout). 

I have my baseline plan, which now includes key workouts, about 3 workouts a week, that are the absolute top priority sessions. Date and time can vary, but these are my focus. The other sessions are generally lower intensity, shorter in duration, or some combination of the two. Key workout ideas make training easier for me given the amount of sessions I do in a week. If your goal is to run three times a week and include some cross training, then prioritize the runs and be relaxed about the cross training. It all comes down to intentionality, as does anything we do in life that’s really important to us.

So how do you use your plan in a way that doesn’t stress you out?

Use your baseline as exactly that – a baseline, a starting point. It should be guiding rather than prescriptive. If you can hit the majority of your training sessions consistently, you will see progress in time, so don’t sweat the details (pun intended, oh I love a good pun!) Tracking a few metrics and doing the occasional fitness benchmark test related to your sport can help you keep tabs on your progress.

Learning how to become flexible and adaptable with your training will have a sneaky way of benefitting you in other areas of your life. It’s worked wonders for me. I approach most things with a “go with the flow” attitude. I’m not thrown off when plans change – it no longer comes as a shock (I almost expect it now). 

What happens when life happens

Once you flex your flexibility muscle (geez, another joke?), hopefully your enjoyment remains high. In order to be in it for the long haul, it’s important to be disciplined AND enjoy the process, even as the goals and aspirations evolve. And as you pursue consistency and build dedication, life will inevitably throw roadblocks in your way. Whether it’s an injury, a major life change, or anything in between, things happen that could throw off your training for a few days or a few months. So what do you do?

• Take care of yourself! Prioritize your health above everything, because you can’t do ANY of the things you enjoy if you’re not healthy. Training is a leveling up of your fitness – it’s a step above maintaining good health and can be taxing on your body, so adjust accordingly.
• Leverage that flexibility to the max! Step back, evaluate, and reassess your baseline if needed. Maybe it works to back off on the training intensity and/or volume, especially if there is an injury! Make sure you ease back into it – small steps, consistently.
• Remember the consistency you’ve developed and what HAS worked. Even if you feel off your game and discouraged (incredibly normal ways to feel), tell yourself (even if you don’t believe it yet) that you can still get to where you want to be, even with a setback.

You can do it!

Training is a journey, not a rigid checklist. By setting your own baseline, finding low-friction opportunities, and embracing flexibility, you create a training plan that works with your life, not against it. Progress comes from consistency over time, not perfection in the moment. When life inevitably throws a curveball, remember that small adjustments keep you moving forward.

Most importantly, enjoy the process! Training should add to your life, not stress you out. Stay focused on your goals, but don’t forget to celebrate the wins, both big and small. Whether it’s a strong workout, a well-earned rest day, or simply showing up, every step counts. Keep going and have fun along the way!